If there is will, this may be the way
By Mary Lou Aurell
A 35-year-old man who grew up in Nashwauk sat in the Itasca Resource Center (IRC) lobby recently waiting to see someone about foods stamps, health insurance and a job. He had been looking for work since late January. He lives at Grace House in Grand Rapids, one of 10 on extended stay at the homeless shelter who has been looking for work for at least six weeks. He needs to make between $8 and $10 an hour to pay rent and child support. He also must save $700 to pay the fine for a DWI before he can get his license back. Many jobs he might apply for require a license.
This man is lucky that he is looking for work and for help in Itasca County. He can find what he needs under one roof, rather than going all over town looking for help amidst growing frustration.
He is sitting near the Minnesota Workforce Center where he found a job possibility in Deer River. One of the center’s most popular services is the Minnesota Works Program, a computerized listing on which employers enter jobs that are available and potential employees can see what’s out there and, perhaps, apply on line.
Minnesota Power recently listed an entry level position and a link to a website where individuals could apply, according to Judy Lundquist, a career counselor in the Minnesota Workforce Center. There were 100 applicants for that job.
Minnesota Works has also become a tool for some of the 20 individuals recently laid off by Grand Itasca Medical Center. They will find that Florida or Arizona are hot spots for jobs in the medical field.
The workforce center has not been as busy as it was when Blandin Paper laid off 300 or when Ainsworth closed. Individuals now pass through in spurts of 2 to 3 or 5 to 10 until the next big layoff, Lundquist explained.
In addition to assistance with unemployment benefits and job search, services for the blind, a Primary Youth Employment Program, work with the Minnesota Family Investment Program and a Concentrated Incarceration Program for Thistledew women, the Northeast Minnesota Office of Job Training is located here. This program helps low income adults find work or retrain for jobs that are currently available. It also retrains workers who have been laid off. Part of this training includes information on how to write a resume or what to do on an interview. “There were laid-off workers from Ainsworth who never had a job interview,” Lundquist said. “They were picked out of a line and put to work.
“We help people from both ends of the spectrum,” Lundquist continued. “This includes anyone from an unemployed engineer with 30 years of experience to a 16-year-old who is trying to figure out how to get into the job market.” Moms are going back to work and seniors are looking for jobs to augment their income as the cost of living increases.
“They are all competing for the same limited number of jobs,” Lundquist noted. “Still, people are finding jobs. However, it’s harder now and they have to do it more systematically.” Networking has become very important and the unemployed are being taught how to make such connections.
The activity in the Workforce Center is funded mostly by the state and federal governments, with some assistance from the county.
How do the unemployed look for work, retrain, get to a job interview or travel from home to a job and back if they don’t have transportation? They do it through Itasca County Rural Rides. This new program exists because of the start-up money given by the Blandin Foundation, according to Kyle Erickson who works in the program. The state continued the program this year.
Clients receive tickets to ride the AEOA bus, fondly known as the “Blue Bus”, vouchers to take a taxi or go with volunteer drivers to their destinations. There is also a carpooling incentive.
Rural Rides uses a case management concept to work with its clients. “As long as they work toward their goals to become self-sufficient they can remain in the program,” Erickson said. “You have to realize that these are low income people and it’s going to take them awhile to set money aside to become self-sufficient.”
Currently, the program is serving about 100 people. “In February, we gave 815 rides on the bus or in a taxi or private vehicle,” Erickson said. If you are interested in the program, call 327-6757. Volunteers are reimbursed for mileage.
Remember the man in the IRA lobby? He uses bus tickets.
If you or someone you know has lost a job, the links below may be of assistance.
Minnesota Workforce Center
http://www.mnwfc.org
Minnesota Works Program
http://www.mnwfc.org/jobopenings.htm
Applicant Self-Service System
http://www.uimn.org/ui/webclaim.htm
Unemployment Information
http://www.uimn.org
Veterans Information
http://www.co.itasca.mn.us/Veterans/gov-vet.htm
QUESTION: HAVE YOU RECENTLY LOST A JOB AND FOUND COUNTY SERVICES NECESSARY? CLICK ON "SUBMIT YOUR COMMENTS" AND SHARE YOUR STORY.
A 35-year-old man who grew up in Nashwauk sat in the Itasca Resource Center (IRC) lobby recently waiting to see someone about foods stamps, health insurance and a job. He had been looking for work since late January. He lives at Grace House in Grand Rapids, one of 10 on extended stay at the homeless shelter who has been looking for work for at least six weeks. He needs to make between $8 and $10 an hour to pay rent and child support. He also must save $700 to pay the fine for a DWI before he can get his license back. Many jobs he might apply for require a license.
This man is lucky that he is looking for work and for help in Itasca County. He can find what he needs under one roof, rather than going all over town looking for help amidst growing frustration.
He is sitting near the Minnesota Workforce Center where he found a job possibility in Deer River. One of the center’s most popular services is the Minnesota Works Program, a computerized listing on which employers enter jobs that are available and potential employees can see what’s out there and, perhaps, apply on line.
Minnesota Power recently listed an entry level position and a link to a website where individuals could apply, according to Judy Lundquist, a career counselor in the Minnesota Workforce Center. There were 100 applicants for that job.
Minnesota Works has also become a tool for some of the 20 individuals recently laid off by Grand Itasca Medical Center. They will find that Florida or Arizona are hot spots for jobs in the medical field.
The workforce center has not been as busy as it was when Blandin Paper laid off 300 or when Ainsworth closed. Individuals now pass through in spurts of 2 to 3 or 5 to 10 until the next big layoff, Lundquist explained.
In addition to assistance with unemployment benefits and job search, services for the blind, a Primary Youth Employment Program, work with the Minnesota Family Investment Program and a Concentrated Incarceration Program for Thistledew women, the Northeast Minnesota Office of Job Training is located here. This program helps low income adults find work or retrain for jobs that are currently available. It also retrains workers who have been laid off. Part of this training includes information on how to write a resume or what to do on an interview. “There were laid-off workers from Ainsworth who never had a job interview,” Lundquist said. “They were picked out of a line and put to work.
“We help people from both ends of the spectrum,” Lundquist continued. “This includes anyone from an unemployed engineer with 30 years of experience to a 16-year-old who is trying to figure out how to get into the job market.” Moms are going back to work and seniors are looking for jobs to augment their income as the cost of living increases.
“They are all competing for the same limited number of jobs,” Lundquist noted. “Still, people are finding jobs. However, it’s harder now and they have to do it more systematically.” Networking has become very important and the unemployed are being taught how to make such connections.
The activity in the Workforce Center is funded mostly by the state and federal governments, with some assistance from the county.
How do the unemployed look for work, retrain, get to a job interview or travel from home to a job and back if they don’t have transportation? They do it through Itasca County Rural Rides. This new program exists because of the start-up money given by the Blandin Foundation, according to Kyle Erickson who works in the program. The state continued the program this year.
Clients receive tickets to ride the AEOA bus, fondly known as the “Blue Bus”, vouchers to take a taxi or go with volunteer drivers to their destinations. There is also a carpooling incentive.
Rural Rides uses a case management concept to work with its clients. “As long as they work toward their goals to become self-sufficient they can remain in the program,” Erickson said. “You have to realize that these are low income people and it’s going to take them awhile to set money aside to become self-sufficient.”
Currently, the program is serving about 100 people. “In February, we gave 815 rides on the bus or in a taxi or private vehicle,” Erickson said. If you are interested in the program, call 327-6757. Volunteers are reimbursed for mileage.
Remember the man in the IRA lobby? He uses bus tickets.
If you or someone you know has lost a job, the links below may be of assistance.
Minnesota Workforce Center
http://www.mnwfc.org
Minnesota Works Program
http://www.mnwfc.org/jobopenings.htm
Applicant Self-Service System
http://www.uimn.org/ui/webclaim.htm
Unemployment Information
http://www.uimn.org
Veterans Information
http://www.co.itasca.mn.us/Veterans/gov-vet.htm
QUESTION: HAVE YOU RECENTLY LOST A JOB AND FOUND COUNTY SERVICES NECESSARY? CLICK ON "SUBMIT YOUR COMMENTS" AND SHARE YOUR STORY.
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